


Together

by whoreshi



Category: PRISTIN (Band), SEVENTEEN (Band)
Genre: F/M, birthdays are endearing, current year in this story is unknown so eunwoo's age is unknown, ghost eunwoo, have fun, i was inspired by goblin, lowercase intended, minghao is just mentioned, mingyu is a human, spend your birthdays wisely ok, what am I even doing, wonwoo is a grim reaper teehee, world war II is part of the story
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-02
Updated: 2018-05-02
Packaged: 2019-05-01 04:33:49
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,661
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14512641
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/whoreshi/pseuds/whoreshi
Summary: eunwoo was there, standing beside his bed, holding a plastic cup of warm americano.mingyu smiled. it was such a nice presence to wake up to in a saturday morning.





	Together

eunwoo was so done being a ghost, yet wasn't ready to encounter the grim reaper. she never was ready for the afterlife, but she doesn't care what lies beyond that world anyways; but then again, she was so bored being a ghost.  
  
she never felt hungry or thirsty, and wasn't able to change clothes too. she at least had to thank herself that the clothes she wore when she died was a trendy style and suited her well, although she died a long ago. that, she doesn't remember quite well, but it certainly was around the world war II when her stepmother had to sacrifice her for herself. heck, did her stepmother even love her? having given up eunwoo just to save herself is a proof enough for her to know she was never loved. she was a young woman in her 20s, always abused by that wicked and evil stepparent, and was even used as an instrument of a definitely wrong protection.  
  
eunwoo knew she was going to meet her real parents in the afterlife. her loving mother, her bright father and even her cheery siblings who all suffered at the beginning of the war; yes, she was sure they were just beyond that door through the after life. only she didn't want to go there alone and confront the grim reaper all by herself; she was too afraid to do so.  
  
it was the year 2005 and eunwoo was idly wandering around the usually crowded city of seoul. she didn't know what to do at the moment. all she wanted was to find a fellow ghost who she could bring with her to the grim reaper, and this has been continuing ever since eunwoo died. to her misfortune, she was always bad-mouthed by the other ghosts who saw her. they would go "oh my god, it's that child from the previous world war!" or even "she's that poor girl, terribly raised by a witch." nonetheless, there was always a spark of hope that stayed on eunwoo's heart, waiting for someone who she assumes is just out there, mingling with the terrible community.  
  
so, in this case, she wanted a ghost pal from the new century and someone who was not present during the war, since everyone from the said era knew her. she was always that famous talk among the numerous towns, to which she didn't bother at all; it was her stepmother at fault all along anyways. eunwoo wanted a friendly soul that didn't knew her, someone who won't criticize her, and undeniably someone who she would get along with.  
  
eunwoo heard lively music blasting from some speakers inside a building she just passed by. no, it wasn't a building, it was a restaurant. backing her boots through the sloped down street side, she eyed the ongoing scene through the wide glass window that was nearly the size of a wall. there were colorful balloons everywhere, the room was filled with many people, and at the center of the other side of the room just across the window, eunwoo noticed the golden-colored letter and number shaped balloons hung up in front at the stage, forming a simple but lovely sentence.  
  
'happy 10th birthday, mingyu!'  
  
eunwoo passed through the glass without any difficulty, now entering the vibrant scene. eyes dull, she pitied herself for not having bubbly birthday parties during her birthdays when she was alive. no one even cared about her birthday; heck, no one even knew but her.  
  
when she was a young 10-year old girl, she would lock herself inside her small room and lit up a candle in the midst of a cold tranquil night. holding the lighted match carefully to not burn the only house she can live in, she would sing quietly herself a 'happy birthday' as she forces a smile to her face. then, she would blow the candle by herself before happily going to sleep, then would wake up the next morning, happy to be an official 11 years old without needing to wait for a cutely designed birthday cake to come (for she knew it will never so anyways). 11 years old eunwoo was gladly contented at the fact that she celebrated her birthday by herself as someone who's not really materialistic. however after that, her stepmother confiscated the matches away from her, believing that the young child was aiming to burn their house down. the following nights before her new birthdays, she just sung the happy birthday song again to herself, this time with no candle or match. sad tears streaming down her face, she forced a smile like she would always do, then go to sleep after as she let her tears wet the thin blankets she only had.

eunwoo's birthdays were never the best. she would always be treated like a slave by her stepmother. more devastating than that, she fell on the stairs on her 14th birthday while carrying a basket of fruits that weighed about twenty kilograms. she didn't end up in the hospital of course, she was forced to suffer for days with a sprained ankle and a nearly broken arm, having to continue her intense job around the huge house. when she was in the middle of her early 20s, that night when she celebrated alone, gunshots were heard. their house was being raided by soldiers, and it was at that time she was brought by her stepmother in front of the soldiers, urging them to shoot her stepdaughter instead of her. then, she died. she was murdered on her birthday. after her soul was removed from her body, she met a grim reaper, but then fled away from him, not even ready to be taken to the other world.  
  
clearly, she was never fond of birthdays after that.  
  
and, here she was, having ended up in an enjoyable birthday party of a boy she never saw before. someone new in her life, must be. seeing such a lively celebration, she was envious, but also pleased for the young man. being a kindhearted person, eunwoo always wanted people to enjoy their birthdays unlike her tragic and sad ones.  
  
blending herself through the crowd of people, she watched the bright scene unfold. eunwoo watched the children play games together, people laugh together, and the atmosphere be jolly.  
  
surprisingly to her, a tall child who seemed to be the birthday boy, stared at her right in the eyes. well, maybe he was just staring off, not even knowing he was making an eye contact with a ghost.  
  
it was eating break, basically people eating together and taking rest from the games and shows happily presented. the boy, who eunwoo assumed was mingyu, went to the washroom as eunwoo followed him. she didn't knew exactly why she did that, but she just had the guts to.  
  
little mingyu washed his own hands that were stained by spaghetti sauce. eunwoo watched him at his back through the mirror. the female leaned at the wall, arms crossed. maybe she just wanted to check on herself. but then again, mingyu eyed her.  
  
finally, the young male turned to the ghost, turning off the faucet.  
  
"why are you here? this is not the girls' bathroom, you see."  
  
eunwoo squinted her eyes for a moment. did he just spoke to her?  
  
eunwoo looked behind her, which just made her look dumb. right behind her was just a tiled wall, no more.  
  
"miss, i was talking to you."  
  
eunwoo finally came to her senses.  
  
"you can see me?"  
  
small mingyu raised an eyebrow at her. "of course. are you a ghost?"  
  
eunwoo, at that, had to be honest. "well, yeah."  
  
"thought so." mingyu simply replied, fixing his collar. "you were an uninvited stranger there, so i was wondering who you were. no one seemed to notice you too. so i came to the conclusion that maybe you were someone who's dead."  
  
"well yeah, you're correct." eunwoo stated, honestly feeling awkward at the atmosphere. she had never met someone who can see ghosts all her life, both as a living and dead person.  
  
"i gotta go now. see you." farewelled the birthday boy as eunwoo just shyly nodded. she was left alone inside the male's washroom when mingyu left and closed the door, before she teleported herself and left.  


 

  
it was another day eunwoo wandered around the city, this time in gangnam instead of seoul, again in hunt of a phantom that can be her buddy.  
  
it had been 11 years since eunwoo met mingyu, but right after that, she eventually forgot about him. well, it was no big deal anyway. anyone who can see ghosts can see her. simple as that.  
  
"hey. you again?"  
  
eunwoo almost flinched at the deep voice, nearly having a heart attack. i mean, who would talk to her all of a sudden when she haven't even met a spirit who could be her friend? turning around, her jaw nearly dropped.  
  
"you still look the same. oh, ghosts never age after they die, do they even?"  
  
eunwoo cleared her throat. it was a must since she never spoke for years, except when she just had to yell her wishes on some random rooftops at nights. fortunately, no one would hear her anyways.  
  
"none of us do." she answered, looking at him on the face. she could tell that he matured a lot, some features changed, height now taller than hers, and voice got deeper. "sorry but why are you talking to me? people around us will be bothered about you talking to nothing or rather no one at all, you know."  
  
mingyu let out a chuckle. "they all understand. haven't you heard? i'm always the talk in society. everyone knows about me witnessing souls. i'm lucky to be a son of the country's president so everyone can respect me too."  
  
_oh_ , eunwoo gaped. _so we're just the same after all. except your life was probably more peaceful and jaunty, unlike my very chaotic one._  
  
"oh, that's nice." eunwoo commented smugly. silence engulfed them, before mingyu grabbed her hand. it was around 6 in the evening, skies were getting dark, and eunwoo guessed mingyu had to go home before curfew. there were only a few hours left before that though.  
  
here they were, at the city's park. mingyu locked their hands together, and eunwoo was surprised at her first contact with a living human as a deceased person. she never thought even that this kind of contact was possible. it had been awhile too, feeling this, although all she usually got was a hard beating from her stepmother until her whole body would ache in red.  
  
"since i saw you back at my 10th birthday, i was eager to be friends with you." confessed mingyu, gazing at the night sky above them. "actually, i saw you again many times after that, but i guess you just didn't see me. i thought you were busy thinking stuffs, so i refused to bother you. mostly in the middle of the streets. though the sight of you was enough for me anyways."  
  
eunwoo's heart tickled at that. was he being serious right now?  
  
"i was always interested in you. so while we're together right now, can i please get to know you more?" mingyu begged, eunwoo noticing well in his glinting eyes that he was really pleading with his whole heart.  
  
"okay fine. to put it simply, i'm someone who lived from the second world war."  
  
mingyu gasps. eunwoo didn't react. of course someone would be surprise at the fact that a soul from an old and disordered era was still living in a new century.  
  
"fled away from the grim reaper right after i died. wasn't ready to confront the afterlife. until today, i'm still looking for a nice ghost who can accompany me to the grim reaper and be with me as i go to the afterlife. i'm afraid you know. but every ghosts who see me just keep cussing me, making me feel bad on purpose. i am looking for someone who's not from the same era as me and someone who doesn't know me as that sad and poor girl from the wealthy but vile family, someone who i can get along with as we go to the grim reaper together. but anyone who dies recently just keep being fetched quickly by their grim reapers, so until today, i'm still a gloomy and lonely soul. i would never go to the grim reaper alone. i can't do it."  
  
mingyu pursued his lips, silencing himself. it was a bad atmosphere he caused. eunwoo looked at him in the eye.  
  
"are you not going to ask about my life?"  
  
"w-well, thought it would be a sensitive topic for you so i didn't—"  
  
"i don't mind. besides, it's my first time sharing my story to someone, not even a spirit. it would be a shocking surprise if someone who heard it first was a human. you, actually." eunwoo softly laughed.  
  
mingyu just sheepishly smiled.  
  
deep inside, he was happy as long as the lass was happy.  


 

  
"mingyu!" a feminine voice called out, and it was no other than eunwoo's. "i brought coffee! thought this would at least get you into your senses."  
  
mingyu abruptly sat up in his bed, just waking up. trying to get used to the lights most likely the sunlight peeking through his blinds, he blinked several times in a speed of light. eunwoo was there, standing beside his bed, holding a plastic cup of warm americano.  
  
mingyu smiled. it was such a nice presence to wake up to in a saturday morning.

they shared a lot of memories, precious times and joyful moments, completely enjoying each other's companies. eunwoo actually felt like she was feeling euphoria. _where has this been all my life? more like, where has mingyu been all my life?_  
  
that saturday night at the amusement park, they happily spent precious moments together, smiles visibly bright in their faces. it was no doubt they enjoyed a lot.  
  
at the top of the ferris wheel, mingyu entangled their fingers again like what he would always do, and honestly eunwoo had gotten used to it. during the first few times mingyu would do that, she would aggressively blush and was unable to control herself, but it was glad of her to have finally gotten used to it, although confused if it was platonic or romantic.  
  
"we've been enjoying each other for quite a while now, why can't we be in a relationship?" mingyu questioned. and eunwoo laughed at that.  
  
"because i'm dead and you're alive." eunwoo answered. "remember the guard's face awhile ago before we entered the ferris wheel. probably wondered why you'd ride a ferris wheel alone because it's too rare. if only i was visible."  
  
mingyu pouted at the response. "by the way, when is your birthday? you never told me that."  
  
"apparently... on the first of july?"  
  
"that's way too near! i think... next week or so?" mingyu pondered. "lose track of days. but i'll definitely not forget to mark it."  
  
even if eunwoo was gazing at the amazing night view of the city from the top, she clearly still noticed mingyu's cringy wink from her peripheral vision.  
  
"how old are you?" mingyu questioned again.  
  
"i have no idea, i lose count even if i used to celebrate my own birthdays alone back then." eunwoo replied. "but i'm sure i'm more than one hundred years old now. it had nearly been an entire century."  
  
"mmm," mingyu hummed. "meanwhile i'm just a mere 23 years old guy."  
  
 eunwoo grinned at that. "age doesn't matter."

 

  
  
time flew quick. it was a peaceful and busy afternoon in the city of Seoul in the day of sunday. eunwoo was in the car with mingyu, the latter admitting that he had prepared something special for eunwoo.  
  
"boy, you didn't have to drive," eunwoo groaned. "i could've just taken you there in less than a second."  
  
"i wanted this to be a special surprise," mingyu grinned widely, his canine teeth showing. "no fun if you were to take the both of us there. plus, i just had to show my driving skills to you."  
  
eunwoo scoffed. "awhile ago i told you to turn right and you almost turned left instead. now you call this driving skills?"  
  
"geez, i was confused for a while okay?" mingyu groaned too, sick of eunwoo's actual complaints.  
  
"drivers doesn't get confuse nor confuse themselves. sometimes i wonder why did your wealthy father even allowed you to drive and get your license."  
  
"hey, don't you think we're a bit same?" mingyu brought up a topic. "we're both from a rich family and we're always the talk..."  
  
"pfft, that's all we got in similarity. nothing more." eunwoo shifted her gaze to the road, watching mingyu turning directions. "your life still had less problems and trials than mine. i suffered since birth."  
  
"hey hey, we were just talking okay? no need to be so serious." mingyu shushed, trying to change the topic but miserably failing in the process. eunwoo caught sight of a family van parked on the side of street. the van door was open but guarded anyways. people were chatting happily, laughing together as if there were no longer problems to encounter in this world. then, she heard a rustle of a wheel from the other street; a loaded truck had lose it brakes.  
  
eunwoo gripped mingyu's arm. "m-mingyu, step on your brakes and stop the car,"  
  
mingyu seemed to also notice the coming heavy vehicle and the delightful family van because he stepped harshly on the brake, quickly stopping and no longer had plans to move further.  
  
mingyu eyed eunwoo straight in the eyes. eunwoo spoke, tears about to stream down as she sadly smiled. "you know what to do. sacrifice."

for what felt like the last time, mingyu grasped eunwoo's hand with his as he pulled her into an embrace. eunwoo smiled in between her quiet sobs, hugging the tall male back.

then, an intense and loud crash was heard throughout the streets.

 

  
  
people came to gather into the incident scene, making a fuss. in the driver's seat of mingyu's car, you could see his head bloodied as he had hit the stirring wheel way too hard, no longer alive. beside him was eunwoo, sobbing happily as she muttered a "you did well, sweetheart", phantom self not injured at all. deciding to finally join mingyu to the grim reaper, she kissed the now-dead male's forehead and pats his damaged head for the last time before getting out of the car and vanished into air.  
  
mingyu shivered in his spot. he saw the awful scene unfold in front of him, and caught a glimpse of his dead body still seated on the driver's seat.  
  
"1997, year of the ox. april 6. 23 years old. kim mingyu. that is you. am i right?"  
  
he was about to nod when suddenly, an arm clinged into his. he knew that touch and warmth too well.  
  
"i'm going with him." eunwoo glared pleadingly at the grim reaper whose name tag clipped on his formal black suit says 'jeon wonwoo'. "can i, mister?"  
  
"oh it's you, an old case from a century ago." wonwoo gazed at the female, very familiar with her. "minghao was about to take care of you when you escaped away from him, as what he'd told me."  
  
"yeah," eunwoo agreed. "but now here i am, ready to be taken by the other world."  
  
"sure, i'll take care of you for minghao," wonwoo mumbled before a card magically appeared in between his fingers. "that boy is stressed from our job and also from late night paperworks, so i'll gladly help."  
  
eunwoo just nodded, knowing well that the report that just appeared in the grim reaper's hold was hers. holding the new death announcement card, he recited what he's supposed to.  
  
"1939, year of the rabbit. july 1. age uncalculated. jung eunwoo. am i correct?"  
  
eunwoo bobbed her head in agreement.

 

  
  
the grim reaper's work place was a comfortable and peaceful one, if eunwoo had to tell the truth. eunwoo wanted to choose to drink the tea of oblivion to forget her tragic past, while mingyu chose not to since it was in this life of his that he met such a precious girl who turned out to be a deceased one. due to that, he wished that he and eunwoo will meet again in their next lives without having to worry about their status and identities. honestly for mingyu, both of them being living humans was enough to live with in his next life.

"i want to forget my life but i don't want to forget you," eunwoo whined childishly.  
  
"drinking just half of the tea will help," wonwoo faced the only female in the room, knowing her problematic situation. "just drink half of it, then you'll remember just that boy of yours and not your life."  
  
eunwoo obeyed then proceeded to drink half of her tea. when she finished, wonwoo faced the both of them.  
  
"the afterlife is a u-turn. just pass by that door and there you go."  
  
the two followed, exiting the room. none of them of course forgot to thank the grim reaper, mostly having helped eunwoo with her green tea. they bowed respectfully to wonwoo, bidding farewell. climbing the stairs together hand in hand, mingyu gave the other a grin.  
  
eunwoo in turn frowned at him. "what?"  
  
"nothing. i was just surprised that i was the one all along that you've been waiting all these times for."  
  
"hmm, true. i wasn't really expecting that."  
  
"what matters is we're together."  
  
"wait, what about my gift?"  
  
mingyu giggled.  
  
"let's hope god is nice enough to us by placing it on the afterlife. let's just hope we can celebrate your birthday there, okay?"

 

  
  
  
**maybe in their next lives, they could be more than just together.**

**Author's Note:**

> yay im done tysm for making it all the way here !!! ily ♡♡♡


End file.
